“A disaster is something not predicted or prepared for.” — LRH
In 2010, with the success of Scientology-cult.com and the retribution against whistle blowers that the Church of Scientology is famous for, I began to be more concerned about the subject of security. So, I postulated finding someone who could help and sure enough I did.
A friend introduced me to a gentleman named Ruben Puente who needed a website. Turned out that Ruben, a native Texan, had some 38 years of on-the-street law enforcement and security management experience. Ruben helped me, and so I want to introduce him to you in case you also might need or want some help.Ruben is a retired cop, but not just any cop. He has a 26-year career with Texas Law Enforcement in the Dallas area and retired as a police commander. He holds an Active Peace Officer license and a Security Consultant license qualifying him for investigations, consulting and training.
Fluent in two languages (Spanish and English) he is an active instructor in law enforcement and a member of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association and ASIS International.
He is a graduate of several Law Enforcement Executive Colleges and curricula including the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration’s Management College and School of Police Supervision, the “LEMIT” Leadership Command College.
Ruben graduated from the 210th Session of the FBI National Academy, Quantico, VA — elite law enforcement training attended by invitation only.
Ruben earned a BS degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1985 and earned a Masters degree from Southern Methodist University in 2001. In May of 2001, he also completed his Advanced Graduate Studies in Dispute Resolution at Southern Methodist University. In August 2011, he will earn his second Masters degree in Criminal Justice and Security.
Ruben’s corporate experience included a term as Senior Manager of Corporate Security with Frito Lay North America, where he was responsible for a workforce numbering 49,000 employees in regional offices, manufacturing plants and distribution centers throughout the U.S.
He was also Senior Manager overseeing corporate security operations for Major League Baseball, Office of the Baseball Commissioner, headquartered in New York City. There, he was responsible for the personal safety of top executives and star players; through training and consulting he created a safe security perimeter.
Unlike “private investigators” with no law enforcement experience, Ruben has been on countless drug busts, apprehended dangerous criminals, and conducted hundreds of investigations as a police detective — murder cases, white-collar crime, you name it. He worked for decades interviewing witnesses and suspects, dusting for fingerprints, finding evidence, analyzing statements and his specialty — obtaining confessions.
Ruben is an expert with a subject called “micro-inequities” the subtle body language that indicates when someone is telling the truth. Perhaps you’ve heard it said that 90% of communication is body language. Well, when you know what to look for, tiny unavoidable indicators like flinches, twitches, darting eyes, coughs and itches are beacons lighting the roadway to truth. This kind of linguistics skill comes from interviewing thousands of witnesses and suspects. And what it really means is Ruben is tri-lingual: Spanish, English and body language.
I briefed Ruben on the Church of Scientology and he has studied their dirty tricks, harassment, hate crimes, stalking and cyber stalking. He’s read articles and watched videos on Marty’s blog and on Scientology-cult.com and spoken to key Independents who are being actively harassed.
The word “security” means “the state of being free from danger or threat.” The derivation comes from “securus” which means “free from care.” And when you are dealing with suppression, being “free from care” merely requires doing something about it.
I hired Ruben to conduct a threat assessment on my home, personal life and business. This gave me peace of mind because I understood what my risks were and were not. He helped me put together a security plan for each area of my life. And although the risk was rather low in some areas of my life, the time to get prepared is when the risk factor is at 2 or 3, not when it jumps to 12.
At my home, Ruben took photos and did a full security analysis with recommendations that I implemented for security lighting and discrete 24-hour video. Ruben told me what kind of equipment to get and I was able to install it myself over a few weekends.
He also gave my wife and I security training — and if you are going to get trained, doesn’t it make sense to learn from an expert? On the force, Ruben was responsible for training officers and keeping them from getting shot so we felt like we could really trust what he told us. On-the-street experience is invaluable. For example, Ruben showed us where a person would hide in an ambush and explained what would happen and what to do. And should we ever walk in on an armed intruder, Ruben taught us a key defensive tactic guaranteed to delay anyone from shooting. Tricks of the trade like these can keep you alive when seconds count.
Something you may not know about “private investigators”: Many of them are retired desk jockeys who have no on-the-street experience. They have never stormed the home of armed felon, caught murderers or stopped a robbery in progress with guns drawn.
Here in Texas, I had someone bothering me occasionally who I was pretty sure was working for the CoS. So I hired Ruben to investigate him. What he found was interesting to say the least.
Most “private investigators” are qualified to do only minor investigations. They aren’t certified for consulting or training. They don’t have friends throughout the law enforcement community. Ruben is the real deal. If anything unusual happens, I have someone to call. His services include,
- Personal protection training
- Safe storage, concealment and use of firearms
- Personal, home and business threat assessment
- Home vulnerability assessment
- Security technology recommendations
- Civil and criminal Investigations
- Confidential surveillance
- Suspect investigation
- Police liaison
- Latent print examination
- Statement analysis
- Witness interviews
- Police report investigation
- Forensics/Evidence collection
- Cell phone and computer forensics
- Crime scene analysis and reconstruction
- Crisis management contingency planning
- Policy and procedure evaluations
In my own life, being prepared has brought peace of mind. LRH explained when a crew is prepared for anything, “anything” seldom happens. And if it does, it rarely becomes anything worse than an emergency. I’ve seen many examples of this over the years.
True to form, since getting prepared in 2010, I have had almost no harassment. We have friends throughout our neighborhood and they are briefed on my status as a whistle blower and briefed as well on the tactics of David Miscavige’s systematic retaliation efforts involving harassment, hate crimes and stalking.
I’ve visited the local police departments and the FBI here in Dallas and briefed them, and gotten their advice on what to do if I need their help.
Once I got prepared I no longer felt “at risk.” I’ve got the FBI, Dallas Police, a top-notch private investigator and the neighbors on my side. I’ve got numerous security systems in place in my personal life and where ever I go. I know what to do.
The old boy-scout motto was “Be prepared.” LRH said, “A disaster is something not predicted or prepared for” — thus by definition, if you predict what could happen, and if you prepare for disaster, disaster never happens.
If you want to make sure nothing happens, get prepared. Get prepared because you want nothing to happen.
If you have any attention on your own personal, home or business security, be proactive. Visit your local police department; they’re there to help you. Give Ruben a call or visit his website. He really dislikes bullies. You can visit his website at www.guardiainvestigations.com. Or email him at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Ruben has not paid me to write this. I’m writing it because he is a friend and I’m excited to share a new resource with the Independent field.
If you have any slightest concern or worry, that is the indicator that you need to do something. That is your intuition. Get your security in and have more peace of mind.
Thoughtful